Is It Worth It?
by Related To Italy
Summary: Zabuza's daughter seeks revenge of her father's death. She falls in love with Kakashi without knowing he's the one who killed her father. Will she choose revenge or love? My first story, hope you like it!


Prolouge:

When my mother was still alive, she was voice of reason in my life. Whenever I wanted to do something crazy, she would ask, "Is it worth it?" The first 'it' would be what I wanted to do. The second 'it' referred to the risks. So "Is what you want to do worth the risks?" Sometimes the answer was yes. Other times the answer was no. Either way, I always thought long and hard about Mother's question. She was always making me think about things like that. Always making me think before I act. The one time I disobeyed her ended very, very badly. But that's a story for another time. My mother's name is Hanako Furumori. My father's name is Zabuza Momochi. Mother was barely 18 when she had me; Zabuza was 20. He left Mother with a new born baby and didn't come back once. Thus, Mother raised me on her own. We lived in the smallest village in the Land of Mist. It wasn't anywhere close to the Village Hidden in the Mist. But Mother was a ninja. She gave up being one to raise me. She knew the dangerous world we lived in and taught me herself to ensure my safety as much as possible. She also had a kekki genki called the Mizunochikara, the water force. It gives us the ability to control water with no hand signs. It was obvious that Furumori wasn't our clan name, but she would never tell me what the real one was.

A few days after I turned seventeen, Mother fell ill. Within the next week, she died. For a good part of the year, all I did was mourn in a silly stupor. The old woman of the village would cajole me into eating sometimes, but it didn't matter. I grew thin and sickly; I couldn't live without my mother. One day, the village was attacked by several missing-nin. I nearly died trying to get away in my sickened state. A woodcutter found me and brought me to his family. There I was nursed back to health. I visited my village and saw nothing but ashes.

I was the only survivor. That woke me up. I swore on my mother's grave to hunt down the monsters that did this. It grew to me becoming a professional hunter of missing-nin.

And nine years of nothing but hunting and killing, my world was going to shatter.

~Nine Years Later~

Ah.

Well.

This would be challenging.

Not that I didn't like challenging things, but this bordered insanity. I studied the paper in my hand. It was a letter informing me of my father's demise.

My father, Zabuza Momochi.

I'll be damned. Something can kill him. I crumpled the paper. Of course, this means I have to kill the SOB who did this. Regardless of my emotional standing with my father, I had to get revenge.

Why?

Because I'll appear weak if I don't. My job relies on my reputation. I'm a bounty hunter who hunts down missing nins or any criminals. No one would hire someone who can't get revenge for their father.

Even if he was a rogue ninja.

The little I knew was that my father's killer was a Konoha ninja with two boys and a pink haired girl. I guessed that those were his students so that would mean he was Jonin level. I had handled Jonins before, but he beat my father. He had to be powerful. And I should expect one hell of a fight. I decided against dressing normally, like a common passerby. I would scout, then hit quick and fast. That was how I liked things. With no stops or detours, I could reach Konoha within a week. _Ikimashou_, then. I'm wasting no time.

~A Week Later~

This was Konoha. I pulled at the detached black sleeves I wore. God it was hot here. Too warm and dry for someone from the Village Hidden in the Mist. However, I walked through the gates. I literally saw the gate guard's jaws drop. Yeah, I get it, I'm pretty. That's why I dress like this, to distract my enemies. As I approached the desk I greeted them. The first one moved his jaw a bit and abruptly shut it. I looked to the other.

"L-let me guide you to the Hokage." He said and stood awkwardly. He led me through the city. I had read and looked over maps of it and knew the lay-out, but seeing it was a different thing. I controlled my outer façade while gawping on the inside. We came to the Hokage office-mansion-building thing. A harried looking young woman burst out. "Shizuka?" the ninja in front of me asked.

She looked at him, "What? Oh, is this a new resident?"

"She's here to talk to the Hokage." The man decided for me. Okay then.

"Tsunade-sama is busy now; I'll handle her for now." Shizuka brushed hair out of her eyes as the ninja nodded and disappeared down the hall. "Hello, I'm Shizuka. You need to talk to Tsunade?"

I smiled and nodded, "I'm Aya Furumori. I can talk to her tomorrow if need be."

Shizuka smiled, "No, she'll like to meet you before the day is over. Can you come back around, say, five minutes before four?"

"Sure."

Shizuka looked weary. Besides, I needed to scout.

"Thank you so much." She said. As she walked down the hall, I watched her: such power for a small thing. Shame about the Konoha. So many powerful ninja; but they indulged in mercy and were thus weak.

I strolled down the town. At 3:55 I'd have to return and give some excuse as to why I was here. But I can't believe they would be this trusting with a stranger in their land. Spying a promising dango shop, I slipped in quietly. There were few customers, all sitting at the bar. I sat a seat away from a man with white, gravity defying white hair. When the waitress looked at me I ordered a green tea and two sweet dangos. Then I took a good look around. I stiffened. What was with this man's chakra? It was normal, powerful but still normal, until it reached his covered eyes, then a huge flare of power. How odd. "What's under the headband?" I asked.

He looked at me, amused, "Curiosity killed the cat."

"And satisfaction brought it back." I countered. He chuckled, then full-out laughed. It was a nice laugh. I could get used to it . . . _No! Stop! Concentrate girl! You have a mission!_ "I'm Aya Furumori." I said and held out a hand.

"Kakashi Hatake. Pleased to meet you." We shook on it. "You are new in town." He stated.

"Yup. I'm here to hunt."

"Bounty?"

"Mmhmm." Kakashi's eyebrow lifted but made no further reaction. I looked at his hair again. "How much gel do you use every day to keep that up?"

Kakashi fluffed his hair. "No gel. All natural."

"Bull." I scoffed.

"Mmhm. Feel it. It's fluffy and soft and _no gel_." I did as he said.

"Marvel." I said and sat down. "You still haven't told me what you're hiding underneath that mask."

He tapped the metal part of his headband. "And I never will."

"Shame." I said and looked up at the clock, "Shit!" My dangos had arrived and I hadn't even eaten them. I didn't drink my tea either. I threw down some money and grabbed the dangos. "Nice talking to you in a monosyllable conversation, but I'm running late. See you." I dashed out with a dango in my mouth. I jumped on to the roofs and saw and blond kid heading at me.

"Naruto!" I heard a girl yell and saw a pink haired girl right behind him. I vault jumped over the two and continued toward the Hokage.

I neared the office door and knocked.

"Come in." a voice said. I entered and saw a buxom blond woman sitting in a chair looking all high and mighty. "I am Tsunade the Godaime. Please state your business."

"I'm a bounty hunter, Aya."

"From where?"

"The Mist."

"A Mist bounty hunter? Why are you here?" Tsunade asked.

"To hunt." I answered simply.

"Who?" she asked sharply, getting annoyed. Uh oh. I didn't know any- oh wait.

"Itachi. Itachi Uchiha."

"What?" a voice asked behind me in alarm. I turned and my eyes zeroed in on the person's hair.

"Duck butt." I said quietly.

"What?" he repeated in anger. Whoops. He heard me.

I held my hands up, "That was mean of me." I said, and he looked smug for a moment, "It obviously looks more like a cockatoo hair style." The blond boy behind him laughed and Tsunade hid a chuckle. "Ah!" we both said at the same time.

"Aya!"

"Kakashi!" We said each other's names at the same moment. "What a coincidence to see you here!"

"Are you sure you're not stalking me?" he asked, grinning under his mask.

"Psh. I have better things to do hot stuff, than track you around."

"Hot stuff?" he asked, slightly taken aback.

"Not as hot as me, of course." I said, preening.

This exchange was a source of great amusement to the four onlookers. Or, three. Cockatoo ass was glaring at me and waiting for a moment to intervene.

"What about Itachi?" he finally asked, his voice hard as rock.

"Aya here is going to hunt him down because he's a missing nin." Tsunade said, returning to her papers.

I crossed my arms, "Why so worked up about it?"

"Itachi is my brother! He's mine!" Cockatoo shouted. My eyes widened.

"You're not . . ." I suppose everyone thought I'd say 'another Uchiha' and I was going to say that until my mouth spat out something else, "Into incest, are you? Or are you just masochistic?" Stupid, stupid mouth! I could see every one anime sweat drop. "What? Think about his sentence! It totally sounded like that, right?" The blond jumped up to my side and I recognized him and the pink haired one as the people I jumped over.

"I like you! Dattebayo!" he gave me a sunny grin and a thumbs up.

"Nice!" I responded and mirrored his action. Tsunade cleared her throat and my attention was once again turned to her.

"Team 9, if you would please wait outside . . ." The four went out. "Aya, I know you want to hunt Itachi, but I can't let you. Sasuke, 'cockatoo ass' as you called him, _is_ Itachi's younger brother." I nodded stiffly.

"You don't have to explain, Godaime. I know the feeling of wanting revenge. Speaking of, would you happen to have any information on the whereabouts of Zabuza Momochi?" The feel of my father's name on my lips made me want to gag. Tsunade blinked at me.

"You haven't heard . . . ? Zabuza Momochi has been killed by the Copy-cat ninja." I felt the breath whoosh out of me. Gee Dad, of all the people to be killed by . . .

I looked up to see Tsunade digging through her paper-filled desk. The Copy-cat ninja . . . that was all I had to go on. I never bothered to learn this ninja's real name or talents or looks. All I knew is that he could copy any jutsu. I bowed to Tsunade and made some excuse to leave. I turned on me heel and left. My anger was peaking. I had to defeat the fucking Copy-cat ninja. My dad really was a complete ass. I shouldn't even be looking for revenge. Being so distracted, I didn't noticed the shadow trailing me.

I don't know how long I walked, but I came to a lake side. There was a startling lack of human life. I walked on the dock and kept walking. I took a step off the end of it and the water rose to make a path. I walked on the water until I reached the middle. I sat down and pulled myself into lotus position. I laid my hands on my knees, palms up, and breathed in slowly. I closed my eyes. Calm. Calm as a lake. Calm as a stone. I repeated the mantra over to myself. I slowly brought my hands to the cool water. I could feel the chill, but felt no wetness. I carefully lifted myself into a handstand, keeping my eyes closed and my breathing steady. I lifted on hand so it was parallel to the water platform. One hand and my eyes suddenly flashed open. I pushed off that one hand and flew a good height in the air. I spun and landed again on a platform made of water. I raised my arms and started dancing. The water moved with me in complicated patterns. It weaved a spider-like web around me, staying still. I made a diamond with my thumbs and index fingers, lacing the rest together. I blew through the diamond while spinning. The water crystalized and froze into ice. I stopped to see a net woven around me with incredible grace and elegance if I do say so myself. I drew my hands up and the water from the lake followed it. I moved my hands quickly, shaping what I wanted. I blew on it and the water froze in a heart with intricate swirls. I smiled softly at it. I blinked. Holy shit, what was I doing? I made the diamond with my fingers again and muttered the release. The ice turned back into water and the water fell to the lake again. I was left standing in the middle of the lake on a water platform. I sensed a presence and whipped around to see none other than Kakashi on the dock. I might have tried to bluff my way out of this, but didn't feel the need. He had already seen. I walked to him, not removing my gaze from his. Soon, I stepped onto the wood dock with him. I was toe-to-toe with him; I already knew neither of us was going to back down. We stood in silence for a few minutes. "Pretty." He finally commented. My mouth quirked in a small smile at his understatement.

"Thanks . . . hot stuff."

"Sure . . . water girl." I scowled at him.

"Don't test me, Kakashi."

"Don't tempt me, Aya." I shoved his shoulder and when he tried to do the same, I dropped to my hands and feet suddenly and kicked at his stomach. He, of course, blocked it and tried to push me in the water. You would've thought he didn't seen what had just occurred. I willed for another platform and made a hand spring off of that. I landed and made a several water shurikens, throwing them at him. At the last moment, I made them dissolve into water, merely splashing his front instead of tearing through him.

"Don't make me . . ." he started to threaten and water tentacles suddenly wrapped around him. "How are you doing this with no hand signs?" he asked, trapped. I smirked and sashayed over to him.

"Look at what I caught. How easily my prey is caught!" I grabbed his face in my hands and leaned in close to study him. "This would be easier without his mask." I said and yanked the mask down. Well, who knew he was hiding this face behind that mask. I stroked my finger across his cheekbone. "What a shame to hide such a face." I whispered, mere inches away from his face. I fingered his headband. I pulled it off. His eye was closed, but there was a long scar through it.

Both of his eyes were closed.

"That's not fair." I told my captive.

"Life's not fair." He retaliated. Now how to open his eyes . . . I came up with something. I could've probably done something smarter if I really thought about it, but I admit I was a tad impatient.

I kissed him.

Electricity coated my skin and buzzed down my spine. I think I might have gasped. My eyes slipped closed and the water around Kakashi returned to the lake. I felt my knees go weak and I wrapped my arms around his neck for support. I felt his arms twine around my waist and suddenly our tongues were fighting to see who would dominate. He won and carefully explored my mouth. When we pulled away, we were both gasping for breath. Our foreheads rested against each other's.

"Who are you?" I asked him. I looked into his eyes. One was an onyx black and the other was the Sharingan. I didn't even flinch at it. I rather liked the combination. So different and unbalanced.

"Who are you?" Kakashi asked me. He reached up to stroke my cheek. I leaned into his touch, closing my eyes and loving the warmth.

Then my eyes flew open.

I jerked back out of his touch, my eyes wide from shock.

"No, no, no, no . . . this can't happen." I whispered. I clenched my hands into fists. God, what is wrong with me? This only happens in stories and fairytales. I had met him for the first time today. He could not have torn down my walls this fast.

I refused to believe I had fallen in love with this man.

"Aya . . ." Kakashi said and took a step forward with a hand stretched out. He wanted me. I wanted to give in and say yes. I wanted to go to him.

"No!" I screeched instead, "Don't touch me!" I scrambled back a few steps. "Stop it!" The look of concern in Kakashi's eyes nearly tore me apart. I growled at him and jumped away. I landed on the other side of the lake. I looked back at the man I had left on the dock.

I turned away.

I would not let him make me weak. If I had to tear out my own heart to do it, I would. I could afford no compassion.

That was it.

I had to leave.

Screw avenging my father. I couldn't face this man. Not as he affected me so.

Besides, I knew nothing about the 'Copy-cat Ninja'. It was time to research. I leaped over the gates to the village and headed on.

I wouldn't return.

Not until I got my revenge.

~Two Years Later~

I looked curiously at the large gates before me. I had said I wouldn't return. But this is where I was brought. This is where I was led. I smirked as I slid into the village without a soul noticing. It was sort of unfair what life had taught me. I had researched about the Copy-cat Ninja. I had made plans on the quickest and easiest way to defeat him.

I had also learned his name.

Kakashi Hatake.

The man I still loved.

I had to kill this man. I had gotten enough jobs to support me all this time. I had trained tirelessly. Now was time for me to confront him. I jumped around the village, trying to be as quiet and invisible as I could. I slowed as I recognized my surroundings. Pulling a tiny bottle from the pocket, I filled it with my blood. Foolish, but it wouldn't matter for long. I took a piece of paper out of my pocket and looked over the words I had written. A simple message: Help Me. Please Come. Bring No One. He would fall for it. I wrapped the note around the bottle and slid it into the mail box.

Now that game would start.

I waited in a field, five miles from the village. I had chosen this place because of the river that flowed mere meters underneath it. It was nearing sunset when he arrived in the small clearing. Like he was instructed, he brought no one. I analyzed him. As handsome as the time I had left him. From the flare of power around him, he had just finished a jutsu. He was on edge, obviously. I chuckled from the branch I was sitting on. He whipped around.

"Foolish." I told him, "You would come alone? Do you think you are strong enough to handle all of us?"

Even through his mask, I could see him smirk, "All one of you?"

I smirked down at him. It didn't matter, seeing as I was hidden in the shadows. "Maybe." I jumped down, swinging my swords at his head. He blocked with his forearm and blood spurted over both of us. He also got a view of my face. We jumped away from each other. Kakashi was in shock. His lone eye was wide and I could see the outline of a dropped jaw under his mask.

"Aya . . .?" he asked.

I smirked coldly at him, "What a surprise . . . you actually remember me." I moved forward like lightning and slashed again. "I've never forgotten you." I hissed in his ear before kicking him in the side. He flew across the clearing, but caught himself. He crouched there. His head suddenly shot up and he pulled up his headband, revealing the Sharingan eye.

"Where were you?" he roared. I faltered. What? "Why did you leave me?" I clenched my jaw and attacked him again. Kakashi pulled out two kunais to block both of my short swords. The blows we exchanged were hard and furious. When we broke apart again, I answered.

"I had to train."

"Why?" he asked. I flashed towards him and sliced at him. He jerked back and slapped a hand over the small cut on his cheek. His mask fell around his neck, revealing his beautiful face.

"To kill you." Each of my blows were blocked by his. I began to think we were evenly matched until he knocked my left sword out of my grip. I scowled and tried to reverse kick at him. He caught my foot and pulled it towards him. I slipped and lost my footing. We both fell towards the ground. I was caught in a moment of panic. He would kill me now. Then, my training took over. I bent further backwards and caught myself on my hands and executed a kick. I bit back a scream as my leg was yanked from its socket. I flopped uselessly to the ground. I looked up at Kakashi, still standing. We were both panting, blood and dirty. You don't really notice it until you're about to die. He raised the kunai. But then he faltered. "Can't kill me?" I said cruelly, "If you let me live, I'll just come after you again."

"Why? I thought that . . . I thought . . ."

"You thought what? That I liked you? That I fell in love with you? Well, guess what?" I hissed. He flinched, already dreading what I was to say next. "You're right. I did fall in love." He looked at me in surprise and gave the most beautiful smile that ever graced the world. A pain in my chest was almost too much to bear and I started to cry. "Don't." I croaked, "I have to kill you. For Father." He froze again.

"'For Father'? Did I-?" He sounded so remorseful.

"Yes," I chuckled, "He sort of deserved it, but he was still my father."

"Who-?" he began.

"Zabuza Momochi . . . Yeah, I'm his daughter. Ironically, I became a missing-nin hunter. Funny isn't it? But now I suppose . . . it doesn't matter. I'm not strong enough to kill you. You'll have to do it, or I will."

I reached over and grabbed my short sword. With a quick, jerky movement, I popped my leg back in its socket. I sat up and faced Kakashi and offered my sword, hilt first. He made no move to grab it. I shrugged and pulled it towards me. The sword didn't meet its target of my stomach because Kakashi grabbed my hand at the last minute. He wrestled the sword from me.

"No! Don't! Please don't! I lived two years of my life in torture not knowing if you were alive or not! Don't end your life now. I love you! Please, please don't leave me again." He hugged me and I was too stunned to push him off. I felt his tears on my skin and his body shook with sobs. He loves me . . . I thought, ecstatic and dismayed at the idea. My lack of response must have worried him for he looked at me with wet eyes. Tilting my head back, he stroked the side of my face and kissed me. I snaked my arms around his neck and kissed him back. My mother's voice echoed in my head "Is it worth it?"

Why, yes Mother. I believe it is.


End file.
